♪ and it makes me wanna take a back road makes me wanna take the long way home

♪ ♪ >> again we're live in ohio where mitt romney and paul ryan are kicking off with the real recovery road rally. they'll be joined tonight by their wives. the romney ryan tour will cover eleven states florida iowa michigan north carolina new hampshire virginia and wisconsin. and of course the tour is kicking off here in ohio. live road to the white house coverage here on c-span.

>> ladies and gentlemen from the great stated of ohio lieutenant governor mayor -- mary taylor.

>> four more days. are we ready to do everything we can in ohio to elect mitt romney and paul ryan the next president and vice president of the united states? as always a great crowd in

ohio. this is outstanding. i've done a lot of campaign rallies over the past couple of weeks and i've decided i've boiled my reasons for supporting mitt romney and paul ryan down to three reasons. the first, president obama comes to ohio and likes to take credit for getting our state back on track. but we know that's not true. it's the work that the governor and i have done with all of you to balance our budget and get our state back on track. we didn't raise taxes, we cut taxes. [applause] here is my second reason and this one is personal for me. my youngest son is 18-year-old and he voted for the first time this year in a presidential election. a couple of weeks ago before a

friday night football game his friend were at our house and they were in his room and i decided i wonder when they're talking about, girls, the football game t next concert they're going to go to, maybe kid rock. but i went upstairs and i was listening outside the door and they didn't know i was there. they were talking about this election because they know their future is is riding on four more days. if i could talk to the women in the audience.

and i see there are just a few women here tonight. you know the democrats have talked a lot lately about this war on women. let me tell you what i think the war on women is. for the first time in 17 years we have more women living in poverty. we have nearly 6 million women unemployed today and over 400,000 of those women have lost their jobs in the last four years. now that's a war on women if you ask me. [applause] we want jobs. that's great. you can come back to the conversation. this is the last, number three, and ate plice to all of us here tonight. after this last debate i asked myself one simple question and i'll ask you that question tonight. who do we trust as parents and grandparents to protect our sons and daughters when their

sent to foreign lands to protect our country? my answer, mitt romney. [applause] and this is my final message to our president currently, barack obama if you're a country music fan you may recognize the lyrics. you don't have to go home, but you can't stay here. [applause] so please welcome our next speaker, the governor of the great state of ohio. [applause]

>> do you like what's going on in ohio? we're growing jobs and helping families. well let me tell you what we're doing in mow hoe is what mitt romney is going to do in jashjash and get this country back on track again. [applause] it's really faith ladies and gentlemen and boys and girls, and by the way i've never seen so many young people at campaign rallies. and i'll tell you what i think it's all about. we as americans recognize we have two pathes to choose. we've seen what the last four years gives us and it gives us more government that's inefficient and doesn't work very well.

it gives us the possibility of even higher taxes. and there's a lot of reasons i hate higher taxes, the billingest reason is i know where that money goes in that city and it's time to clean it up down there. the last thing we need is higher taxes and regulators. instead of embracing the people that give people opportunity for jobs shes they pound on us, they pound on small business people and stunt our growth. but we have another choice here tonight. and that's why there is so many people here tonight. you know it's about that american dream. you know government is not the answer. government is the last resort and not a first resort. and we know we're stronger when we run america from the bottom up. when people have more money in their pocket. when families have more wemmingt and people get jobs.

and the greatest issue in america today is jobs. and the reason is mom and dad are working, the family is stronger t children are stronger. it all works for a stronger america and stronger communities. that is what mitt romney and paul ryan will give us, stronger families and stronger communities. and it's not theory. i have to tell you ladies and gentlemen if there's anything we need no government today it's people who know how to create jobs. we need that and mitt romney has been a successful job creator and when they attack him those are people that don't understand how to rise america. he's a proven job creator and then he went into government. and he took the state of massachusetts from deficits to surplus, from job losses to job gains. and let's think about his pure leadership capability in those olympics. he didn't lead with a title and

he didn't lead with anything other than the ability of a human being to raise the bar of everybody else. you know what, my kids are 12 years old. i want an america that will give the next generation more than the last generation gave to us. that's the greatest american tradition that we celebrate across our great country. . i know he's going to deliver that. i'm not for mitt romney just because he happens to be a republican. i'm for mitt romney because he will lead to a brighter and stronger america and a brighter and stronger ohio. we need the wind at our back, not in our face. there are a lot of polls out there talking about what the going to happen. i've thought about it long and

hard and i don't spin a lot. i do it straight from the shoulder. look around. look at this crowd. look at this enthuse asm and not just here. not just here but all across this state of ohio. yes the world is watching us. the world is watching ohio and i've got a message for the world that is watching. we are going to elect mitt romney and paul ryan president and vice president of the united states. and it is my pleasure to introduce the chairman of the romney campaign in ohio, i think he did a pretty good job preparing mitt romney to debate barack obama, a great united states senator rob portman.

>> ohio looks like romney ryan country to me tonight. i know it's cold out there but we're freezing for a reason aren't we? it's about our families, it's about our commune tiss and it's about our country. four more days to avoid four more years. it's worth it. [applause] is the chair of ohio i got to ask you a couple of things. the first one is go ahead and vote. jane and i did it today their

open tomorrow from 8:00 to 2:00. tell me you're going to go bank your vote. are you going to do that. i need you to do that to free you up on election day to get more people to the polls. now second, we got to put up more signs and make more phone calls and more door to door. will you commit to do that over the next four days? of course you will. we're in the fourth quarter. getting toward end of the fourth quarter. the game is tide. we're in the red zone. we've got the football. are we going to take mitt romney and paul ryan over the goal line? of course we are. folks, no one wants mitt romney to win more than the speaker of the house john boehner.

you know why, because he and mitt romney share the same passion and that's a passion to restore the american promise and bring back the american dream. he needs a partner t in the olve office whol do that with him. ladies and gentlemen, john boehner. [applause] >> i've been on the road for the last six weeks helping my

danddat and every place i go people ask me how are we going to do in ohio. well, by the looks of things tonight, i think we're in romney ryan country right here. i couldn't be more proud of the team we've got on the ballot here in ohio this year. mitt romney, paul ryan, josh man dell, sharon kennedy, a team ready to bring america back. [applause] a lot of you know i grew up not far from here but we moved here almost 38 years ago. raised our daughters here, moved my business here. this is our home. and i couldn't think of a prouder time for a westchester

ohio than tonight. when i was running my business here, i saw how government could make it harder. i saw what government could do to stifle job creation. this is the heart land of america and in some ways this is where it all started for paul ryan as well. we got involved to help stave american dream. and four years ago people gave barack obama and chance to do just that. they believed him when he said heed turn things around. he talked about hope and change and post partisan politics and all we've gotten for the american people is they're hoping for change. so here we are four years later the american people are still asking the question, where are the jobs. we've got less jobs and we've got less freedom. do we want four more years like

that? can we afford four more years like that? hell no, we can't. we need more jobs and we need more freedom. simple as that. listen, tonight is a proud moment for our town but it's also a call to action. if you haven't voted yet, go vote early. don't wait until tuesday, go vote erm. you can knock on doors, you can make phone calls. you can go to my office. we need your help over these next four days if we're going to bring this thing home. ohio is where this closing push begins and it's ohio where this election victory is going to be won. [applause] 23 years ago i was a candidate for congress for the first time. and you know if you're me you got a handicap trying to run for a political office when

your name likes like beaner bainer they're not going to vote for you unless they can say your name. i was against a former congressman who wanted his job back and his name was tom kindness. nobody thought i could win. a lot of you helped me win that race. there was a 20-year-old college student at miami of ohio putting yard signs -- [applause] >> it's kind of hard -- but 22 years ago tonight i had a 20-year-old miami student putting yard signs up for me in ohio. i've known paul ryan a long time which one of the most

decent honest guys you'll ever meet. one of the smartest guys in congress that knows more about policies progrowth than anybody. somebody who can help lead our country. but he's also a great father and great husband. help me welcome the next vice president of the united states, paul ryan. [applause]

o.h. i love that. thank you so much. thank you for waiting in line. thank you for coming here tonight. thank you for knocking on the doors, for making the phone calls. thank you ohio for delivering your state for the next president of the united states mitt romney. [applause] i want to thank my speaker, our

speaker john boehner for being the speaker. [applause] i want to thank the other leaders for what you've done for our country. and i want to introdoes you to my best and better half, my wife. i got my lucky buck eye with me tonight. rob guarantees me this wins elections. while we're celebrating tonight, the fact that we can come together and save this country and put us on the right track, let's keep our fellow americans in the northeast who are surfing in the wake of the storm in our prayers. we can go to red cross.org and

make a donation. if you can i would encourage you to do that because we come together in our moment of need and that's what we owe our friends in the northeast. this is a big election. we have a really big choice ahead of us. we are not just picking a president for four more years. we are choosing for at least a generation what kind of people we're going to be and what kind of country we're going to give to our kids and grandkids. in ohio you know it. you know you're the lynch pin, you're the battleground of battlegrounds. ohio, are you going to help us win this thing? [applause] that's exactly right. four years ago -- that's right.

four years ago president obama said he would do all these great things, hope and change. heed cut the deficit in half, heed bring everybody together. the deficit has doubled. it's the most partisan time we've had and just look at the jobs that didn't occur. we got a new jobs report today. unemployment is higher than the day he took office. you got 23 million americans struggling for work today. 15% of our fellow citizens living in poverty today. that's the highest in a generation. all those jobs he said heed create if he borrowed a lot of money and gave it to these interest groups, it didn't material lies. we have a jobs crisis. wouldn't it be nice to actually have a job creator in the white

house for a change? [applause] four years ago i want to read you a quote. if you don't have fresh ideas, use stale tactics to scare voters. if you don't have a record to run on then you paint your opponent someone should one from. you make a big election about small things. you know who that was four years ago. so you do know who that was four years ago. that's what president obama when he was candidate said four years ago and that's exactly what he has become. here's the good news. we don't have to take this anymore. [applause] the good news is we don't have to settle for this. we can do better than this. we need leadership, we need mitt romney as our next president of the united states.

this is a time for big ideas. this is a time for a real reform for real recovery. this is who mitt romney is. look at this man's life. achievements, leadership. look at what he's done in the private sector. he helped create tens of,000 thousands of jobs. being successful, that's a good thing. we pleeve in success. we want more of it. this is a man who reached across the aisle, who didn't non-nies democrats. he worked with them. he found common ground and got things down. he balanced a budget without raising taxes. that's the kind of leadership we need. [applause] ladies and gentlemen, this is big and it's bigger than just

paycheck issues. it's the most election in our life times no matter what generation we come from. it's about the american idea. no matter who you are or where you come from in this country because of freedom, because of liberty, because of self-determination, because of those timeless founding principles, because the government is supposed to work for us and not the other way around. we have the american idea. that's what this country is built on. our rights come from nature's god, not from government. that's the idea. [applause] our founders created this vision. they founded the country on it and every one of these veterans here in the audience, they put on the uniform and fought for us and preserved it for us and we thank them for what they've done for our country. [applause]

this is our moment, ohio. this is the time when we want to wake up on wednesday morning and look back and see that we met the moment. we want to make sure that we talk to everybody we know who thought hope and change sounded good but they now know it didn't work. this is the time to elect a leader. this is the moment where the man and the moment are meeting perfectly. mitt romney is the right man for this moment. we can do this. [applause] we know what we need to do. we are not going to duck these tough issues. we are not going to run away from our problems. we are going to tackle this country's problems before they tackle us and we're not going to spend the next four years blaming other people, we're going to take responsibility and fix this mess in

washington. [applause] we are not going to try to transform this country into something it was never intended to be. [applause] look, i've spent four years of my live at miami of ohio. this is a good place. [applause] we know who we are. we know what we believe in. we know what made this country great. and ladies and gentlemen i am so honored. i am so proud to introduce to you the next president and first lady of the united states mitt and ann romney. ♪ ♪ ♪

>> thank you so much. thank you. thank you ohio. i know who you're here to see and she's right next to me. >> this is quite a crowd. who is going to win next tuesday? and is ohio going to do it for us? what a thrill for us to be here. what a thrill for me to stand next to the man that is going to be the next president of the united states. [applause] this is a man that will not fail.

this is a man that is going to turn around america and i'm going to be so happy to be by his side when i can watch him do that. so thank you all very much. >> thank you so much. what a gathering tonight. i want to thank you for joining paul and me and our families and our friends tonight. you are sending a message tonight to the entire nation. thank you. [applause] and by the way, thanks to kid rock and the other entertainers who have come for us and to the extraordinary team of national leaders who have gathered here. look at this team here. you probably heard they've gathered here tonight because they're about to fan out across the entire nation to make sure we have victory on november 6.

and some comic in the team has named us the romney ryan recovery rally. you're going to see them going across the country. we're going to make sure this is the place we take and we're going to take back the white house. it's good to be in ohio and in john boehner's hometown. this is the state we have to win. now i want to take just a moment to remind all of us that there are many many of our fellow americans that are surfing from the dwassation caused by hurricane sandy and our thoughts and prayers go out to them. and if you're able to help please donate to the salvation army or american red cross.

we're a generous people. don't forget them. let me tell you it's great to be here with the next vice president of the united states, paul ryan and his wife. [applause] next to ann romney, paul ryan is the best choice i've made. we enter the final week of the campaign. and obama is saying four more years. we have a different cry of course. what is it? crowd chanting four more days. >> look what i've started. we are so very grateful to you and to the people across this country who have given to this

campaign. it's not about paul and me. it's about america and the future we're going to leave to our children which we thank you and ask you to stay at it all the way until victory on tuesday night. [applause] now i have a question for you, are you finally ready for real change? [applause] as you know four years ago barack obama promised to do so much. he promised to be a bipartisan but he became the most partisan. then he was going to focus on jobs instead he focused on obama care which killed jobs. he said he was going to cut the deficit in half but doubled it. he said the unemployment rate would be at 5.2% and today we

learned it's at 7.9. unemployment is higher today than when he took office. he promised he would propose a plan to save social security and medicare from insolvency. he didn't. rather he raided $716 from medicare for his obama care plan. he said heed lower healthcare premiums for the average family by $2000 a year which now they're higher. and gasoline the american family pays $2,000 more a year than when the president was lectsed. he said he would work across the aisle on important issues. he has not met on the economy or budget or jobs with either the republican leader of the house or senate since july. so instead of bridging the divide he's made it wider. how has he fallen so sort of

what he promised. in part because he never led before or worked across the aisle or understood how jobs are created in the real economy. so today he makes new promises. promises heel be enable to keep because he admits he's going to stay on the same path. the same path means $20 trillion in debt. it means crippling unemployment. stagnant take home pay. depressed home values and a devastated military. unless we change we may be looking at another recession. the question of this election comes down to this do you want more of the same or do you want real change? [applause] now president obama promised change but he couldn't deliver it. i promised change and i have a record of achieving it.

[applause] i actually built a business and i the turned another business i put orms back on track and with -- olympics back on track. i put my state sfr job loss to job growth and from higher taxes to higher tax home pay. that's why i'm running for president. i know how to change the course the nation is on. [applause] i know how to get us to a balanced budget and how to build jobs and rising take home pay. and by the way accomplishing real change is not something i just talk about, it's something i've done. it's what i'm going to do when i'm president of the united states with your help. [applause] if you believe we can do better, if you believe america should be on a better course. if you're tired of being tired. then i ask you to vote for real change and paul ryan will bring

real change to america from day one. now i know that when we're elected, the economy and american jobs will still be stall nant but i'm not going to waste any time complaining about my predecessor. i won't spend my time trying to pass -- from day one i'm going to go to work helping americans get back to work. people across the country are responding to our five part plan to create jobs. and you've heard about it before. part one is taking full advantage of our energy resources. on day one i'm going to increase the number of permits to drill on federal lands. [applause] i'm going to act speed approval of the keystone pipeline from canada. [applause] and i'm going to revisit coal regulations that were designed

by the administration to strangle the industry. so on day one we'll be closer to energy independence. second i'm going to move to boost trade to latin america especially and i'm going to ask congress for authority that is a power every president has used with the exception of president obama. and i will finally designate china as a currency ma nip pew late tor. it's time to make trade work for america. i'm going to send congress congress the training reform act. who make every worker can get the skills and chance for a good paying job, we deserve it. [applause] fourth i'm going to move to tackle out of control spending. i'm going to send congress the first of several fundamental reforms. the first will be called the down payment on fiscal sanity act to immediately cut, not just slow the rate of growth

but actually cut non-security discretionary spending by 5%. i'm not going to take office on january 20g9. i'm going to take responsibility for that office as well. [applause] . and number five i'm going to act to boost small business and all business. i'm going to issue executive orders at the problems holding this country back. the first will be to grant wavers to all states from obama care so we can begin it's repeal. the launch of a sweeping review of all obama era regulations will follow with a eye to repair or eliminating any regulation that kills jobs or hurts business. every small business person, every job creator will know for the first time in four years the government of the united

states likes them and loves the jobs and higher wages they bring to our fellow americans. [applause] we've almost forgotten what a real recovery looks like. what americans can achieve when we limit government instead of limiting the dreams of our fellow americans. and that's going to change. now you can choose your future. you know what you need to know. you can stay on the path of the last four years or you can choose real change. you know that if the president were to be re-elected, he would still be enable to work with the people in congress. he's ignored them, he's tacked them, blamed them. the debt ceiling is going to come up again and shut down and default will be threatened chilling the economy. the president was right the other day when he said he can't change washington from the

inside. we're going to take him at his word and heel be outside washington soon. [applause] now if i'm elect -- when i'm elected president -- [applause] i'm going to work with republicans and democrats in congress. i'm going to meet regularly with their leaders. i'll endeavor to find those dwood and men and women on both sides of the aisle who care more about the country than about politics. together we're going to put the nation on track to a balance budget, to reform our tax code and to finally reaffirm our commit commiment to financial responsibility. it's got to happen. now you know if the president were to be re-elected, heed continue his war on coal and oil and natural gas. heed spend billions of more

dollars to his favorite companies and this would guarantee higher prices at the pumps and fewer jobs. today gasoline cost twice as much as when president obama was elected. when i'm elected we're going to change course on energy. we can help hold down prices at the pump, grow new energy and manufacturing jobs and get north american energy independent. [applause] now you know if the president is re-elected he's going to continue to promote government and demote businesses. he chose by the way his own jobs counsel sill was made up of the biz leaders he selected. it's been nine months since he met with them. i see free enterprise as a means for people to fulfill their dreams. yesterday i was in virginia.

i met a lady who has been running her family restaurants for years. it's been in the family for 82 years. and at high point she employed 82 people. she just closed it down. telling me that regulations and taxes and obama care and the effect was of the obama economy put her out of business after 82 years. she teered up. this wasn't about money. this was about the future for her family and for her family of employees employs. look i want to help the people like her and i will. [applause] you know if the president is re-elected he's going to say every good thing you can think of about education but in the final analysis heel do what his biggest supporters, the public

sector unions insist upon and your kids will be in the same schools with the same results. when i'm president i'm going to be a voice of the children and the parents. there's no union for the p.t.a. [applause] i'm going to make sure parents have the information they need to know if their school is succeeding or failing and i want them to have the choice they can pick the school where their child can succeed. [applause] i've watched over these last few months as our campaign has gathered the strength of a movement, not only size of crowds like this, it's the depth of our shared conviction. our readiness for new possibilities. the sense that our work is soon to begin. it's made me strive more to be worthy of your support, to campaign as i would govern. to speak for the aspirations of all americans. i learned the best achievements

are shared apreevementcheevements. i learned respect go along way and are returned in kind. that's how i'll conduct myself as president. i'll reach out to both sides of the aisle and bring people together and do things for the common good which i won't represent one party. i'll represent one nation. [applause] i'll try to show the best of america at a time when only our best will do. throughout the campaign president obama has tried to convince you that these last four years have been a success. he's been floating a plan for the next four years. he wants to take all the things he did in his first term, the stimulus, obama care and try them all over again. but our big dreams will not be satisfied with a small agenda that's already failed us.

and today did you see what president obama said today? he asked his supporters to vote for revenge, for revenge. instead i ask the american people to vote for love of country. [applause] it is absolutely essential that together we lead america to a better place than that. we are four days away from a fresh start. four days away from the first day of a new beginning. my conviction that better days are ahead is not based on

promised and hollow rhetoric but on proveb results and an unshakable faith in the american spirit. if there is anyone worried that the last four years are the best we can do. if anyone fears is american dream is fading, if there is anyone who wonders whether better jobs and better pay checks are a thing of the past, i have a clear message, with the right leadership, america is coming roaring back. [applause] we are americans, we can do anything. the only thing that stands between us and some of the best years we've ever known is a lack of leadership and that's why we have elections. this tuesday is a moment to look into the future and imagen what we can do. put the past four years behind us and start building a new future. you saw the differences when

president obama were side to side in our debates. [applause] he says it has to be this wafmente i say it can't stay this way. he is offering excuses. i've got a plan. i can't wait for us to get started. he's hoping we'll settle. americans don't settle. we build. we aspire. we listen to that voice inside us that says we can do better, a better job, a better life for our kids, a bigger better country. that life is out there waiting for us. our destiny is in the hands of american people. four more days. four more days and we can to work rebuilding our country,

restoring our confidence and conviction. confidence that college garage watts four years from now will find better jobs. [applause] confidence that single moms working two jobs today will have a shot at a better job tomorrow. on november 6, we come together for a better future. on november 7 we'll get to work. we'll reach across -- we're going to reach across the street to that neighbor with the other yard sign and we'll reach across the aisle in washington to people of good faith in that other party. there is so much more than this being our moment. it's america's moment of purpose and optimism. we've journeyed far and wide for this campaign. one final push will get us there. we've known many long days and

short nights and we are so very close. the door to a brighter future is there. it's open. it's waiting for us. i need your vote. i need your help. walk with me, walk together. [applause] some time ago ann and i watched a show on television. ed the a fictional football team that would go out of the locker room and touch assign as

they headed out to the gridiron where they would play teams that were ranked higher than they. and the sign they touched said clear eyes, full hearts can't lose. i'm convinced that the people of ohio have clear eyes. you understand what is at stake. i know you have full hearts, you love this country and its future. and i know we can't lose on tuesday cht we're going to win. i need your help. god bless you and god bless the united states of america. thank you so very much. thank you. ♪ ♪ [captioning performed by national captioning institute]

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♪ >> this rally in westchester, ohio is the kick-off of a romney-ryan tour which will cover 11 battleground states through election day.

you can watch this again in about two and a half hours on c-span. ♪ >> tomorrow on washington journal fred sainz discusses same sex marriage. tony perkins, social conservative talks about the 2012 campaign. he looks at some of the other issues on balance around the country. "washington journal" live on c-span 7:00 a.m. eastern. >> this has been the subject of

some debate. some scholars think that booth realized that in the event of the death of both the president and the vice president, the secretary of state was tasked with organizing an election. i don't think. so booth wasn't a lawyer. he was an actor. and a shakespearian actor who knew to play julius caesar backwards and forwards. he viewed himself as brutus doing the right thing for rome and he viewed lincoln as caesar the tyrant. and he viewed steward like mark anthony the co-tyrant. he wanted to make sure that the co-tyrant was eliminated as well as the tyrant. >> more on william seward with walter stahr on c-span's "q&a."

now president obama speaks at a campaign rally in hilliard, ohio. one of the stops he made in the buckeye state. over the weekend, he will visit iowa, wisconsin, virginia, new hampshire, florida and colorado. this runs 40 minutes. >> hello, ohio. o-h. o-h. it's good to be back. can everybody give judy a big round of applause? judy is an example of the incredible volunteers involved in this campaign each and every day, knocking on doors and making phone calls. i love all of you and am grateful to all of you for all your great work. give it up for your former

governor and our great friend ted strickland. [cheers and applause] poor ted has got a cold but he is backstage and he is still out campaigning. i love you back. you know - [applause] i can tell it as a rowdy crowd. [cheers and applause] >> four more years! four more years!

four more years! four more years! >> thank you. well, listen, you know, for the past few days, all ofus have been focused on one of the worst storms in our lifetimes. i just got off the phone with my emergency management team and got an update on what is happening in new jersey and new york and connecticut, west virginia where there is a whole lot of snow. as a nation, we mourn those who were lost. you can only imagine what so many families are going through right now. the message i have sent every time i talk to people back east is we stand with the people of new york and new jersey and connecticut every step of the way. there is a lot of work that still remains to be done. we've also been inspired these

last few days by the heroes running into buildings and wading through water and neighbors helping neighbors cope with tragedy, the leaders of different parties working together to fix what is broken. it is a spirit that says no matter how bad the storm is, no matter how tough times are, we are all in this together. we rise or fall as one nation and one people. that spirit is what has guided this country for more than two centuries, the idea that we are in this together. it has carried us through the trials and tribulations of the last 200 something years but also the last four years. in 2008, we were in the middle of two wars and the worst economic crisis since the great depression and today, our

businesses created nearly 5.5 million new jobs and this morning we learned that companies hired more workers in october than at any time in the last eight months. [cheers and applause] the american auto industry is back on top. home values and housing construction is on the rise. we are less dependent on foreign oil than any time in the last 20 years. because of the service and sacrifice of our brave men and women in uniform, the war in iraq is over. the war in afghanistan is ending. al qaeda has been decimated and osama bin laden is dead. we have made real progress. this guy had a lot of coffee

this morning. you are fired up. okay. we have made real progress but we are here today because we know we've got more work to do. as long as there is a single american who wants a job and cannot find one, as long as their families working hard but falling behind, as long as there is a child anywhere in this country whose language bars them from opportunity, our fight goes on. we've got more work to do. our fight goes on because this nation cannot succeed without a thriving middle class. it is because america has

always done best when everybody has a fair shot and everybody is doing their fair share and everybody is playing by the same rules. that is what we believe and that's why you elected me in 2008 and that is why i am running for a second term as president of the united states of america. >> four more years! four more years! four more years! four more years! by the way, i think you may have noticed that everybody's paying a lot of attention to ohio. this is a choice not just between two candidates or two parties, it is a choice between two fundamentally different visions of america.

it's a choice between going back to the top down policies that crushed our economy or adopting the kind of policies that will make sure we've got a strong and growing middle-class. that is the choice. as americans, we honor the dreamers and the risk-takers and entrepreneurs and small-business people. they are the folks who have been the driving force behind our free enterprise system. it has been the greatest engine of prosperity but we also believe in this country that people succeed and start businesses and work well in businesses when they get a decent education, when they get a chance to learn new skills, when we support research in medical breakthroughs or new technology. we think america is stronger when we can count on affordable health care and medicare and social security, where there are rules to protect our kids from toxic dumping and mercury poisoning.

we think the market works better when consumers are protected from unscrupulous practices in the credit-card industry or from mortgage lenders and we believe that no politician in washington should control health care choices that women can make for themselves. [cheers and applause] now for eight year, we had a president who shared our beliefs and his name was bill clinton. his economic plan asked the wealthiest americans to pay a little more so we could reduce our deficit and invest in our future. at the time, the republican congress and a senate candidate by the name of mitt romney said this would hurt the economy and kill jobs. it turns out that his judgment was just as bad back then as it is today.

by the end of president clinton's second term, america created 23 million new jobs and incomes were up and poverty was down and we had the biggest surplus in our history instead of a deficit. we know the ideas we believe in work. we know their ideas don't work. for most of the last decade, we tried what they wanted to do, giving big tax cuts to the wealthy that we could not afford, giving insurance companies and oil companies and wall street free rein to do whatever they pleased. you know what we got? falling incomes, record deficits, the poorest job growth in half a century and an economic crisis that we have been cleaning up after for the past four years. so, we know what we want to do

we know what they want to do does not work. we know what we want to grow our middle-class and what they want to do squeezes the middle class. we know that our strategy will make sure we bring our deficit down in a balanced way and their strategy will shoot to the deficit up. we know what the right choice is but let's face it, governor romney is a talented salesman. so we know what the right choice. is but governor romney, he's a have sta talented salesman in this campaign, he's tried as hard as he can to repackage these same policies and offer them up as change. but we know what change looks like. and what the governor's offering ain't in, giving more power to the biggest banks. that's not change. another $5 trillion tax cut that favors the wealthy. that's not change. refusing to answer questions about the details of your policies until after the election? that's not change.

we've seen that before. we've seen that before. ruling out compromise by rub stamping the tea party in congress. that's not change. and by the way, when you try to change the facts just because they're inconvenient to your campaign, that's definitely not change. you know, trying to -- trying to massage the facts, that's not change. that's -- that's just -- we, look, we've been seeing this out of governor romney and his friends over the last few weeks, right here in ohio. you've got folks who work at the jeep plant who have been calling their employers,

worried, asking is it true, are our jobs being shipped to china? and the reason they're make these calls is because governor romney's running an ad that said so. except, it's not true. everybody knows it's not true. the car companies themselves has told governor romney to knock it off. g.m. says, we think creating jobs in the united states should be a source of bipartisan pride. and i couldn't agree more. and i understand that governor romney's had a tough time here in ohio because he was against saving the auto industry and it's hard to run away from that position when you're on videotape saying the words let detroit go bankrupt. and i know, you know, we're close to an election.

but this isn't a game. these are people's jobs. these are people's lives. these car companies are putting a lot of effort to make great products but also to, you know, make sure that everybody in america knows how committed they are to making cars here in america. and so -- so you don't scare hard-working americans just to scare up some votes. that's not what being president's all about. that's not leadership. when i first made the decision to rescue the auto industry, i knew it wasn't popular. and despite the fact that one out of eight jobs in ohio are connected to the auto industry in some way, it wasn't even popular in ohio. but i knew it was the right thing to do. i knew betting on american workers was the right thing to

do, betting on american ingenuity and know how was the right thing to do. it paid off in large towns where g.m. is investing hundreds of millions of dollars in the auto plant. it paid off in tow leado where chrysler's adding 1,000 new jobs on the second shift. not in china. right here in ohio. right here in the united states of america. and so one of the things i hope when you're talking to your friends and your neighbors, they're trying to make up their minds these last few days, think about that. think about the issue of trust. think about, you know, do you want a president who's going to tell you what he believes or what he thinks or someone who's going to -- no, who's going to -- well, change the facts. after four years as president, you know me.

you may not agree with every decision i've made. you may be frustrated sometimes at the pace of change. but you know what i believe. you know where i stand. you know i tell the truth. you know that i fight for you and your families every single day as hard as i know how. you know that. and -- and you know that i know what real change looks like because i fought for real change. and you've helped me every step of the way. after all we've been through together, we can't give up on real change now. change is a country where americans of every age has the skills an education that are needed for getting a good job. and let me tell you when i hear folks saying hiring more teachers won't help this

economy grow, they are wrong. because if we've got great teachers in classrooms, that's going help our kids and it's going to help our economy. don't tell me that students who can't afford college should just borrow more money from their parents. that wasn't an option for me. wasn't an option for a lot of growth. that's why i want to cut the growth in tuition over the next 10 years. [cheers and applause] >> i want to recruit 1,000 math and science teachers so that our kids don't fall behind. i want to train americans with skills that businesses are looking for right now. that's what we're fighting for in this election. that's what real change is. >> i got your back! >> thank you.

change comes up to this country's innovation. the great news about the auto industry is we're not just building cars. we're building better cars, innovative cars. cars that by the middle of the next decade will go twice as far on a gallon of gas. here in ohio, it's not just cars that we're starting to manufacture again. we're building long-lasting batteries an wind turbines all across ohio, all across the country. we've got to keep -- we've got to keep our cutting edge technology and research and investment. i don't want a tax code that subsidies oil profits when they're making money hand over fist. i want to support the new technology that will help cut our oil imports in half and i don't want to reward companies for creating those companies overseas. i want to reward companys that are creating jobs in manufacturing right here in the united states of america. that's my plan. that's what real change is.

change is turning the page on a decade of war so we can do some nation building here at home. as long as i am commander in chief, we will continue to have the strongest military the nation has ever known but it is time to wind down the award to pay down our debt and rebuild america. we need to build bridges and schools all across the ohio and all across america and especially focus on putting our veterans back to work as they come home. i we need to serve them as well as they have served us. no one who fights of this country should have to fight for a job when they come home. [applause] that's what is at stake in this election. that is my commitment.

change is a future where we reduce our deficit but do it in a balanced, responsible way. i have already signed $1 trillion worth of spending cuts. we also have to ask the wealthiest americans to go back to the rates that they paid when bill clinton was in office. if i'm not paying more, governor romney is not paying more, then the choice is to start cutting out the help for young people trying to go to school. it is to hurt those who are vulnerable and those who depend on the things like medicaid. as long as i'm president, i will never turn it into a voucher just to pay for another millionaire's tax cut. i'm not going to make it more expensive for some young person

working hard trying to go to school. i'm not going to make them pay more just so i get a tax break. i'm not going to cut out a research grant so some outstanding young scientist to good of the next discovery -- who could have the next great discoveries for cancer just so i can have more. that's not change. we know what the future requires. back in 2008, i told some of you that i was not just talking about changing presidents or political parties in washington. i said if we're going to talk about real change, it is changing how politics works. i ran because the voices of the american people have been shot out of our democracy for way too long by lobbyists, special interests, politicians who will do whatever it takes to keep

things just the way that they are. over the last four years, the status quo in washington has held up every step of the way spending millions trying to stop us from requirement -- reforming the health-care system, spending millions to try to keep us from reforming wall street, engineering a strategy by refusing to compromise on ideas that most democrats and republicans in the past have supported. what they're counting on now was that he will be so worn down by all the squabbling, so worn down by all the dysfunction that he was to give up, walk away, and put them back into power. in other words, there bet is on cynicism. my bet is on you. my fight is for your . -- my fight is for you.

if the other party wants to be with me in that fight, i will work with them. there were republicans and help us repeal do not ask, do not tell. when they are about broadening opportunity in the middle class, we can work together, but as long as i'm president i will work with anybody of any party to move this country forward. i will work with anyone, but i'm not just going to cut a deal to kick students of all financial aid or gets rid of funding for planned parenthood or let's insurance companies discriminate against people with pre-existing conditions or eliminates health care for millions of medicaid for poor, elderly, disabled.

that is the price of peace, then i will not pay the price. that is not by partisanship. that's not change. that is the same status quo that has hurt the middle class and all those families trying to get into the middle class for way too long. ohio, i'm not ready to give up on the fight. i'm not ready to give up on the fight to make sure that the middle class is growing. i'm not ready to give up on the fight to make sure that every child has an opportunity. i hope you are not either, ohio. you know, the folks at the very top of this country do not need another champion in washington. they already influence. the people who need a champion of the americans whose letters i relayed at night, the men and women i meet on the campaign trail every day, the laid off

workers who was gone back to community college to retrain for the jobs of the future. she needs a chance. a business need and want to expand after the banks turned him down. he needs a chance. the cooks, the waiters, the cleaning staff at a hotel trying to build their first home and send their kids to college, they need a chance. the autoworkers who have lost their jobs on the shore of the plant would ever reopen and are now back in those plants and have the dignity of pride in doing a great job done. the kids in inner cities in the valleys of ohio and right here in hilliard the dream about being scientists come on to burners, even president. they need a champion in washington. -- scientists, inventories,

even the president. it is the dreams of those children that will be are saving grace. it is the dreams of those children that move us forward. that is what we have to champion. that is why i need you, ohio, to make sure their voices are heard, to make sure your voices are heard. we have gone too far to turn back now. we have gone too far. it's time to keep pushing forward. let's get all of our kids and create new jobs, rebuild our infrastructure, discover new sources of energy, opportunity, help our middle-class. let's make sure that no matter who you are or where you come from, you can make it in america. that's what we're trying to do. [applause]

ohio, i'm asking for your vote. if you're willing to work with [applause] me again and make some phone calls for me, turn out for me, grab your friends, neighbors, co-workers, we will win ohio. we will win this election. will reaffirm the bonds that [applause] brought us together. we will reaffirm the spirit that makes the united states of america the greatest nation on earth. thank you, everybody. god bless you. god bless america. [applause] ooh baby here i am signed, sealed, delivered, i'm yours

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>> first and foremost we have to create an environment that our small businesses can thriver. when we look at tax reform that's needed for the whole nation. when we look at the border we need comprehensive imfwration reform. our immigration system is broken. we can't get workers to go back and forth. these problems create an impediment to commerce. so we have to be able to provide a work force that can move back and forth easily and we can't do that because of all the impedestrian ments that are not there by having an

effective immigration policy. >> some of the issues have to do with the issue that was raised here with regard to being near the border, seasonal work that comes on and being especially susceptible to trends in unemployment and the economy. we need some things here desperately. we need a commuter plane come across and go back. that's not easily allowed in our system. we need sequestration that is looming at the first of the year that will hurt military readiness. but for the defense industry it would be devastating. >> watch more debates online nit and throughout the day saturday on c-span starting at 10:00 a.m. eastern. now several perspectives on the

presidential campaign in the battleground state of ohio. from "washington journal." this is an hour and twenty-five minutes. key battleground states as part of a series and the countdown to campaign 2012. today we will wrap up their series by putting a spotlight on ohio. to do that, we are joined by mark naymik, a political reporter with the "cleveland plain dealer." ohio has 18 crucial electoral votes. september unemployment rate of 7%. and a state that president obama won by a little more than four points in 2008. go beyond the numbers and explain why ohio has been described as the ultimate battleground state. guest: great question. ohio doesn't need any more spotlight. the candidates themselves and their running mates have been in ohio about 80 plus times by the time this weekend is

over. that is a lot of activity. and the reason they are here, ohio is that crucial bellwether. and has only been a wrong i think twice in the last 10 or 12 years and predicting a president. we have a great balance of republicans, democrats and independents. about a third of each. in ohio, you do not have to declare a party come your affiliation is determined by which primary votes to cast. and you have some flexibility. also, the geography of ohio lends itself to become a great slice of america. it going to the northeast of ohio on the shores of lake erie, the south shores of lake erie compared to canada, you will find a lot of the industrial base in places like cleveland. as you move further south, you will find a lot of rural areas, and agriculture is the largest export in the state. if the go to the southeast, you will run into the foothills of

the appalachian mountains. people down there that will swing on the economic issues. and the go farther west in the southern part of the state, he will run into cincinnati, very conservative. if you move back up north on the west side, you get towards toledo and begin a mix of both rural and industrial. a lot of auto jobs. one reason why both candidates spend a lot of time there. host: this shows a little what you are talking about as you talk about the geography and ready votes are located. the solid democratic parts of the state and blue, and solid republican parts and read. about that columbus area. guest: columbus the state

capital is where the ohio state is, that has become the key swing area of the state. it is growing. it has younger voters. it is a fluent. it is in an area that the previous bush's had one. but president obama made it flipped and took it by several percentage points. i think you are seeing a lot of attention in going there. this weekend, president obama will be finishing topping off his ohio campaigning in central ohio. in the past tv of cycles, we have seen the democratic candidate come up in northeast ohio and try to make that pushed. i think he is comfortable with the get out to vote efforts. he ought to go down -- he has to appeal to the swing areas. more independent voters. and you had this educated, affluent group, the base around ohio state university. and that has been critical.

in the end, if you show that map, ohio is broken up, we have said it for years into 5 ohios. those five areas, plus some of the border areas, we have about seven media markets. it makes a very expensive to campaign here. in gubernatorial races and some presidential races there will go to west virginia to reach the southern ohio parts. that is where the bigger market is and that has to be part of the mix, too. ohio is five ohios. host: we talked about the issues, the top issues in ohio in this election cycle -- can we talk about the issues? guest: this is like to been a shock to your viewers, but the auto issue has been huge here. i have never seen where one issue in the campaign can play so well here. obviously, it is the battle of

the bailout. who wanted to take it into bankruptcy. who got hurt, who did not. you are seeing the new ones being played on. and you are seeing the big swing, which is on the president's side, i save the auto industry. and the mitt romney has been trying to play the policies of the president and how they have hurt auto and how they will send the jobs to china and elsewhere. you can see how they are targeting some of their campaign stops. this place in the northwest, a very heavily auto-related. and in dayton. -- in dayton you have delphi. it gets into, do those autoparts makers lose their pension as a result of the auto bailout because other people got protection?

this is the kind of thing being battled an ohio. host: the "washington post" puts that in perspective. it notes that there is an auto industry presence in 80 of the 88 counties in ohio. overall, one in eight jobs in the state is tied directly or indirectly to the auto industry. down from one in five a decade ago. we of the auto issue. what else tops the list? guest: is not as big, but it has some importance in the map of ohio. that is the energy issue. particularly coal. those issues play. and it takes it back into what it described earlier, the foothills of the appalachia. mitt romney has run commercials on their targeting it, trying to portray president obama as someone who will hurt the coal country because of its emphasis

and aide to alternative energy, solar and other things. the energy issue has had little bubble here in ohio, perhaps more than some of the other areas because of the coal, we also have the natural gas, for lacking is a big issue as a backdrop and the state. i think people are primed to talk about energy. host: talk to us about the mechanics of voting. early voting allowed in ohio. and the potential for three counts and when that kicks in. guest: ohio has early voting, and has early voting by two methods. we have this no-fault absentee ballot, you do not need a reason, you cannot aldo and an order -- all the campaigns are sending this to get a vote by mail application.and we have it,

which has been much more controversial. if you are looking for a third issue in ohio, it has been over the voting rolls. there have been battles. obama is campaign -- obama's campaign sued the secretary of state on the grounds that have been limited in-person voting for veterans only, leading up to the election, was actually creating an unequal playing field, and the courts have agreed with them. so they have opened in person voting on the final weekend before the election. you can do it by mail, in person. it makes a big difference. both campaigns have pushed the absentee ballot. requests are up. in-person balloting, at least in kyle home county -- at least in the democratic base, is running just ahead of what president

obama hoped to get in 2008, in terms of appellate requests coming from democrats. that is still a pretty strong turnout. and republicans benefit from that same opportunity. but the in person balloting is really driven by the urban democratic votes. host: we are talking to mark naymik, "cleveland plain dealer" correspondent. call and ask your questions about the election and what issues are on your mind. the democratic line is -- 202- 585-3880. republicans -- 202-585-3881. and a special line for ohio residents -- 202-585-3883. mark naymik, take us through, if you could, the conflict over the latest auto ad by the romney campaign. and some of the campaigns they have made about jeep production lines in china. guest: in this has gotten a lot

of attention. and the only thing getting attention during the first few days of the sandy coverage. romney was in ohio. he was holding an event that encouraged people to bring aid and food. this ad was running. in it, it suggests that president obama is responsible, and his policies are responsible for jeep sending more jobs to china. china -- the chrysler owners are investing in china to boost the market there. they are not cutting back in ohio. they are investing more in the toledo area chrysler planned. the romney campaign has been asked about it. and they stand by it. the suggestion is clear that

ohio might lose jobs. but the investment in china is not releated -- related. host: let's play a little bit of the radio ad that talks about this. >> barack obama says he saved the auto industry, but for who? ohio or china? gm cut 15,000 american jobs, but they are planning to double the number of cars in china which means 15,000 more jobs for china. chrysler plans to start making jeeps in china. what happened to the promises made to autoworkers in ohio? this same hard-working men and women who were told the auto bailout would help them. mitt romney would welcome the auto industry. mitt romney, he will stand up for the auto industry in ohio. not china.

host: so that is a radio ad that we were talking about. this has been on television ads across all media markets as well. guest: what i have seen in northeast ohio, yes, there is a version of that that runs. it has drawn a strong rebuke from the owners of chrysler. again, it is taking two unrelated things and trying to argue that the president is responsible for the shipping of jobs to china. it's taking -- there are investments being made in jeep in ohio.

i think it is an example of how important the although voter is. -- the auto voter is. there may be some people who peel off who get upset about that china issue. host: running ads directly challenging the mitt romney ad, here is one of those obama ads now. >> when the auto industry faced collapse, mitt romney turned his back. even the detroit news criticized him for his wrongheadedness on the bailout. now chrysler has refuted romney's lie. jeep is adding jobs in ohio. mitt romney on the ohio jobs, wrong then. dishonest now. host: we are talking to mark naymik, a political reporter with the cleveland "plain dealer."

steve is on the democratic line. caller: my call is concerning green energy and is a question for mark. supposedly, germany, 43% of their energy comes from solar energy. i was just wondering why are people so against green energy when it could dramatically change our cause prices on so much like electricity and everything else. that is my question. guest: thanks for the question. i don't know the numbers in germany. it sounds high to me. green energy is expensive

because we do not have the technology right now i think to certainly -- let's talk about wind power. it is very expensive to have the idea of wind power because you can still generate that energy much cheaper using coal. as we invest more and produce more here in ohio or elsewhere in the country, green energy costs will come down. ohio has tried to make itself a leader on the wind turbine, wind energy. there are programs in ohio that are trying to put stuff on lake erie but it is very expensive to get started. i think that is part of what we are limited on the green energy right now. host: a question on twitter from jim writes -- guest: i'm sure autoworkers will love that but there is a thing called tariffs that make those cars pretty expensive.

they look at the ability to serve a market more directly and more cheaply than over in china. you almost have to have the reverse argument. we want to build cars here and china wants to build them their. host: another call on the line. sheila is waiting. caller: hello? well, i'll tell you what. right now, i am so upset with the way the economy is going. i do not like how obama is not for coal. i do not like obamacare either because i am disabled and my husband is, too.

he is 100% disabled as a veteran. i even asked my doctor about obamacare and he said it was going to be very bad for the patients and even for the doctor's. i am from a big military family. this thing on benghazi, it just really hit hard here. i am very upset because if that had been my son because he was in the military also i would be very upset. i am surprised that some of these families have not even come out more and spoken out about this situation. host: a couple issues there. foreign policy, talk about how it is playing in ohio.

guest: first sheet mentioned the issue of jobs and the economy -- she mentioned the issue of jobs and the economy. mitt romney has made a strong case about laying out why we don't have a better economy. why he would lead the country in a direction toward creating more jobs. i think that has been the strength toward his campaign. when you get into the military, that has been an issue. it was a much bigger issue in 20008. getting into the benghazi issue talking about the attack in libya has not played much in the campaign. it has been more of an issue that the pundits have battled

around but you will not hear that on the campaign trail from voters and elsewhere. host: tennessee on the independent line. go ahead. caller: hi. i've been watching this for the last couple days and i wonder -- he is really trying to help the middle class. i have a business in tennessee. i think he is a good president. mitt romney already has everything. he does not know what it feels to be black or white in the middle class.

give obama i chance. host: a small business owner from tennessee. guest: small business is always in the campaigns and it gets laid out pretty simply that democrats raise taxes and hurt small businesses. republicans always argue they will reduce regulation and reduce taxes. they always try to talk about that small business owner that earns $250,000. that gets a lot of play but it takes the back seat to the jobs issue, the auto industry, the coal issue, and even health care gets battled around. president obama always seems to push that he is 17 or more tax breaks for small businesses. that is still part of the larger issue of jobs. host: a question on the jobs

issue. we are waiting for that latest unemployment report to come out. here is a chart of the unemployment rate across the ohio. that is below the national rate of about 7.8%. are people more focused on that state number or the national number that we will see the latest on this morning? guest: it is the national number. we have a republican governor who has taken credit for some of these job numbers improving which obviously makes it a bit dicey for the republican candidate to come in and argued the president has been so bad for ohio because ohio is doing better than the national average.

people still see unemployment high. that larger picture is definitely the focus of the voters, the campaigns, and the commercials. we have a long way to go here. it is not a big factor in this debate. host: we will go to strongsville, ohio, on the republican line. caller: buy and a chaplain in the justice center. -- i am a chaplain in the justice center. how can we pay our teachers or our defense or anything? i am choosing a man with a planned and that is mitt romney. don't hate me, hear me. vote for mitt romney, get hired.

vote for obama, get fired. host: if you had any thoughts on the comments from the viewer in ohio? guest: we had ann romney with our lieutenant governor. strong smell has been a pretty solid republican area -- strongsville has been a pretty solid republican area. host: let me ask you in the two and a half minutes we have left. what are you going to be watching for on election night in ohio? what returns are you most interested in? guest: we have a couple of swing in counties, bellwethers within the bellwether.

lake county is just east of cuyahoga county along the lake. they usually turn in results first and then have often predicted that president. i am going to look there and in central ohio. there is stark county. they are usually a nice bellwether. we are going to see totals all across the state immediately with early voting totals and absentee ballots because those are processed and recorded but are not tallied. it is the push of a button. we will get a sense of where things are immediately and i think that will probably wherever that is leaning will likely hold as an indicator. i think the race will come down to less than two percentage points in ohio for president obama.

host: we have roy from tennessee on the democratic line. caller: yes, i'm from obama because he says he wants to increase education spending. he wants to add more for teachers, do better for teachers. mitt romney keeps saying i am going to cut education and then i am not going to cut. the bottom line is he is going to cut education programs. he flip-flops' all the time. he also says i want to punish overseas investment to china. is he going to punish himself? he has so many investments over their. -- there. guest: definitely the issue of teachers and education have played a motif in ohio which really goes back to 2010 where we had one of those collective bargaining issues that was on the ballot to undo the republican-led legislation which fired up teachers.

that was successful and people see that as a potential signal for what may happen in just a few days here in ohio. host: mark naymik, a longtime political reporter with "the plain dealer," thank you for joining us. up next, we will have the chairman of the ohio republican party, bob bennett. we focus on the crucial battleground state of ohio. with four days left before the election, thousands of ads. scores of visits by the candidates. is there anything left that has not been said? >> if you look at the campaigns

that are going to be in ohio over the next few days, the have a lot to say yet. we have a small undecided, in the number of voters that have not made up their minds. the big thing is the ground game, getting out to vote. >> talk about the ground game and the path to victory for either candidate, mitt romney, in ohio. the latest average of polls by it real clear politics has obama, but a little over two points, out in ohio. where do you see the race and sexguest: we are showing mitt romney up a couple of points. i think it is all within the margin of error so it really comes down to getting out the vote with the individuals.

i am very confident with our ground game. going through the 2004 election with president bush and senator kerry, i never thought i would see another race like that in a high of. -- in ohio. this one is far exceeding its. the intensive level is greater than even 2004. host: we are talking to the ohio republican party chairman bob bennett. if you have questions for him or about the republican party or just want to learn about the state of ohio, give us a call. talk about at what point you saw romney start to move out there in ohio. i have a list of polls. there have been about 31 polls in the month of october and only about four show romney ahead.

four others showed the race tied. you say mitt romney is ahead in your tracking polls. guest: i think the model most of them are using is the 2008 model and that was an unusual election. host: in terms of sampling? guest: yes. we know the intensity level -- first of all, of voting dropped off substantially in 20008. -- in 2008. the president won ohio by 4.16% -- 4.6% of the vote. we think that model -- we do not believe they have matched and that intensity this year.

we think it has shifted into the republican camp. if you look at the counties around our major metropolitan areas, this is where we are substantially outperforming. not only 2008, but also the 2004 turnout. host: i want to ask you -- we have been talking about hurricane sandy and its effects this morning. do you think it will have an impact on ohio at all? guest: it certainly has had an impact in northern ohio. i live in the city of cleveland and was without electricity from monday to just yesterday. there are still 70,000 folks out. that does not even compared to the problems that new jersey and new york and the eastern sea coast had. i think we've feel pretty lucky. yes, there are some people that are pretty upset because they will not get their electricity back for the first part of the week but in comparison i do not think it will have an impact on the turnout for the election on tuesday.

we have been voting in ohio since october 2. we have early voting here. we expect a third to 40% of our votes will be cast before the election day on tuesday. host: where do you stand in terms of republican and democratic turnout in the early voting? guest: in the urban areas, the democrats have been a very good job in turning out their votes. the overall swing is about 14%. the democrats are down a little bit from their level in 2008. we are up a little bit in our key republican counties. overall we feel good about

where we are right now and we will continue to bring home those votes from now until tuesday. host: we have an ohio line open for ohio president this morning. -- ohio residents this morning. caller: good morning. retired military, unemployed for the last three years. i have watched a lot of c-span. the voter i.d. issue. i am surprised that the issue has not been brought up on the voter i.d. law. my view of it is you need an i.d. for everything. opening a bank account, cashing checks. i think the voter i.d. deal covers a lot of programs where

a lot of fraud and abuse comes in there. i was curious as to why it hasn't been addressed. there is a lot of defense that i think the republican campaign might have done it to squash any allegations of voter suppression. guest: i think he is absolutely right. we know from base polling in ohio that well over 75% of voters support voter identification law in ohio. however we do have identification requirements in ohio. you have to show either a

driver's license, put down the last four digits of your social security number, or you have to show a utility bill showing your address. we do have identification requirements in ohio. we do not have voter identification requirements but i think overall the legislature has felt it has not been necessary in ohio. we do have pre-registration in ohio. you have to be a resident for 30 days in ohio in which to register to vote. we think that is fair. we have other requirements in our law that we think need to be addressed. host: let go to pennsylvania on the democratic line. david, go ahead.

caller: good morning. i am a union member, a union carpenter over here in pennsylvania. i just wanted to call and ask you what is your opinion on organized labor. all i see is the republicans trying to break all the teachers unions. pennsylvania, ohio, and all over the country. this looks like a referendum on the reagan election when he busted up the air traffic controllers. union members should take note of this. this could be the most important election of our lifetime. guest: i come from a long family of union members. i have a son-in-law who is a member of a local electrical union in cleveland. i do not think most republicans are anti-union.

i think we look for a balance in union representation and we look for unions to be progressive in adapting to the changes that take place whether in technology or anything else. i think the same thing for the teachers' unions. taking advantage of the technology that is available and making sure we have qualified teachers in the classroom, that is the most important thing to the republican party and the constituency. we have good teachers. we also have some bad teachers and it is very difficult under the tenure requirements, the union contract, to get rid of those bad teachers. i think that is the objection that many voters have to the teachers' unions and some of the contract. contract.